SALEM, VA --The Shaw volleyball team took care of business in straight sets (25-15, 25-20, 25-22) to beat the Winston-Salem State University Rams Friday at the Salem Civic Center.
The win improves the Lady Bears' overall record to 23-7 on the season and puts them into the CIAA Championship match for the third season in a row.
The Bears were led by a double-double from Noelani Beard, who registered 11 kills and 10 digs on the day. Mallory Brown also added 10 kills to help the offense. On the defensive end, Ilani Myers chipped in for with 10 digs to go with one blocks from Myazia West.
Game Notes
» Kamille Patrick had a match-high three aces in the win.
» Noelani Beard registered a double-double with 11 kills and 10 digs
» Shaw never trailed on the way to winning the third set 25-22.
» Noelani Beard had a team-high 11 kills for Shaw.
» Shaw got a match-high 10 digs from Ilani Myers.
» Shaw attackers were helped by a match-high 33 assists from Breelyn Clark.
How It Happened
SET 1 | The Lady Bears earned a set-one victory 25-15 thanks to a solid performance on the attacking side. Shaw put together a .429 attack percentage with 14 kills in the set victory. The Lady Bears ended on a strong note, stretching their lead to its largest point in the set to finish out the stanza. Shaw also supplemented their offense with four aces in the opening set.
SET 2 | After their win in the first set, Shaw put themselves on the cusp of a sweep with a 25-20 victory in set number two. The Lady Bears grabbed the advantage for good at 21-20 in a set that showcased two lead changes before the Lady Bears took over in the second half of the stanza. The Shaw offense also got a boost from four aces in the stanza.
SET 3 | Shaw closed the match in a 3-0 sweep after taking set three. The Lady Bears took a 1-0 lead and never looked back in the set to earn a 25-22 victory. Shaw opened up as much as a nine point lead at 15-6 before closing out the set, totaling 15 kills along the way. The Shaw offense also got a boost from three aces in the stanza.
Up Next
Shaw will face the winner of the ECSU/FSU match on Saturday evening for the CIAA Championship. First serve is slated for 6 PM.
Quotes
Head Coach Jonathan Paulk
"The first set, the difference was our serving. We ran off several aces to give us a big boost. It gave us a lead they weren't coming back from. In the second set, we gave up a big lead on errors and lack of movement on defense. We took a timeout late in that set, and we capitalized on them having a deficiency. We kept the ball on that spot and earned several points. All of a sudden, within a span of two minutes we're up two from down four."
Outside Hitter Ilani Myers
"Kamille [Patrick] had a really big serving run at the end [of the first set] that got us a pretty big lead. Mallory [Brown] is always a rock star on the front row in crunch time."
"The key was wanting to win. We came to not mess around and to win a ring. We are ready. There is really good competition [at the tournament] but we are ready."
